Sorghum Germplasm Collection, Conservation and Improvement in Ethiopia.

Sorghum is believed to have originated in north east Africa, a region recognized as Ethiopia and Sudan in modern geography. The continued presence of diverse forms of both cultivated and wild species and all botanical races in this region testifies to this claim. Archeological evidences also indicate that sorghum was used in human diet in the region as far back as 10,000 years ago. Collection and conservation of sorghum in Ethiopia started following the emergence of modern Agricultural Colleges in the late 1940s. Locally grown cultivars were collected and preserved for educational purposes and also for use in germplasm improvement that started almost about same time at the then Alemaya College of Agriculture and its satellite experiment station at Debre Zeit. However, the nationally coordinated effort to collect and preserve crop germplasm did not start until the establishment of the National Germplasm Bank in 1980s. At present, close 10,000 sorghum accessions are maintained by the Ethiopian Biodiversity Conservation Institute. The Ethiopian germplasm also represent the largest proportion of the US sorghum germplasm repository. The collections were made at different times over the course of 40 years period. The Ethiopian national sorghum improvement program largely relies on these germplasm resources for enhancing sorghum productivity in the country while elite genetic stocks from regional and international research programs are also used as sources of novel traits. As one of the Vavlovian centers of origin, Ethiopia was a signatory to the International Convention for Biodiversity Conservation.  However, the lack of strong adherence to the provisions of the convention by all parties and objective mechanism for recognizing and rewarding the contribution of local farmers to development and conservation of the resources seem to have frustrated the distribution and utilization of this resource for use in plant breeding programs.